


Drudge Up The Forgotten

by GalekhXigisi



Series: the same 3 donatello headcanons i adore in collection [5]
Category: Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Cartoon 2018)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Autistic Donatello (TMNT), Protective Donatello (TMNT), Sibling Rivalry, Teen Pregnancy, Trans Donatello (TMNT)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-21
Updated: 2020-09-22
Packaged: 2021-03-07 19:54:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,361
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26573290
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GalekhXigisi/pseuds/GalekhXigisi
Summary: Donnie was the final Hamato left in Baron Draxum's care after a hefty amount of swindling on his step mothers' part, especially after his biological fathers' passing when he was just fifteen. After years of only seeing them once between then and now, he's done more than just a few things.He sees his siblings again, albeit this time to attend a different fathers' funeral.How's he going to explain to them that within the years he's been gone, he's had a kid and taken over Baron's company altogether? And will they be able to survive the passing of Baron as well as the issues that will inevitably follow?(aka the angst that I've really been wanting to write lately)
Relationships: April O'Neil/Sunita (TMNT), Casey Jones/April O'Neil (TMNT), Casey Jones/April O'Neil/Sunita (TMNT), Casey Jones/Sunita (TMNT), Donatello & April O'Neil (TMNT), Donatello & Baron Draxum (TMNT), Donatello & Michelangelo (TMNT), Donatello & S.H.E.L.L.D.O.N. (TMNT)
Series: the same 3 donatello headcanons i adore in collection [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1923205
Comments: 1
Kudos: 18





	1. Chapter 1

Donnie never thought life would turn out like this. Never, not once, had he ever believed that he would end up sitting in the abandoned office of what was once his fathers’ home, sighing quietly as he gently places his son on the ground. 

“Daddy,” Shelldon says in a soft tone, the seven-year-old tentatively holding onto his hand as he peers up at his father, “Is Grampy gonna be okay? Feel better now that he’s gone?” 

The man smiles softly and nods, the action slow. “Yeah,” he whispers in a soft tone. He hasn’t yet figured out how to fully explain that Grampy Baron has passed away, but Shelldon’s seemingly gotten the hint by now. “He’s going to feel a lot better.” He brings a hand up, gently ruffling the long coils of hair on his son’s head, sympathetic. “Hey, why don’t you go and see if you can find Grampy’s old spatula he used to let you play with?” 

Shelldon perks up, the gloomy expression he was attempting to mask with a soft look now shifting into a determined expression. The seven-year-old nods immediately. He grabs his bag, dutifully marching off with a gentle stomp to his footsteps. Donnie knows that if he needs anything, he’ll yell or something of that sort. He’s not one to be ashamed of needing help or guidance of any sort, a silent blessing for the father who had thought for years that the only thing he could properly take care of was a handful of robots. 

He feels bad being in the study once more, to be quite honest with anyone that has the guts to ask. Baron Draxum may not have been his biological father, no, but he had adopted Donatello and Michelangelo after his divorce with Yoshi Hamato. Sure, it had separated them for a good bit, but after Donnie’s seventh birthday, he’d met his other two siblings and had bonded with them and his biological dad. However, the actor passed away on Donnie’s fifteenth birthday, an unfortunate turn of events that had, for the most part, battered the family. It put a lot of stress on Baron, adopting two new sons and taking them beneath his wing. It hadn’t helped that their stepmother had battled for custody, the woman nicknamed Big Mama eventually snagging hold of Mikey, Raph, and Leo by the time Donnie’s sixteenth birthday rolled around. Donnie hadn’t blamed her too much for it, happy to stay with his father, despite how lonely it had become. 

After a point, though, he starts to, in the best terms he could come up with,  _ “act out.” _ He hadn’t meant to, honestly, but he missed his siblings and he was reckless, which was how he ended up announcing a short time later through a hefty amount of tears that he was pregnant, resulting in Shelldon’s birth nine months later. Baron stayed with him through all of it, nurtured his son and helped him with his own, helped Donnie when things became overstimulating and he had to walk away so he, himself, would not have a meltdown. It had its ups and downs, yes, but he had  _ been there _ and helped  _ raise Shelldon. _

It’s undeniable as he stands alone in the study that Draxum loved his family. Despite having (very) limited contact with his other children, he had pictures of them scattered around the room, mixed with projects he had done with Donnie and Shelldon over the years. There are a few papers scattered from the last time the middle child had been in here, but that had been because of a very emotional time where Baron was in the hospital and Donnie was practically alone, despite having his son. He had yet to let the boy see him break and he doesn’t plan on letting anything slip any time soon as he treads forward, looking for the purple pendant he knows is somewhere around here. 

It’s simple, just something Donnie had bought when he was younger for his father, but… His stomach twists at the thought of leaving it here any longer. He has no idea what he’ll do with it, of course not, but the twenty-four-year-old needs to collect it and go before the mask of indifference shatters beneath the hold of the nostalgic home he’s been avoiding so harshly. 

It takes a few minutes of moving things around (as well as organizing what he can) before he finds it and slips it into his pocket, calling for his son immediately. The boy tramples forward, stumbling over his own feet but straightening up once he gains the balance to. Donnie offers a hand out to hold, which the boy takes immediately. He smiles up to his dad, insisting he lock the door with a gap-toothed grin filled with determination accompanying it. Donnie smiles and nods to him, happy to have him distracted for the time being. 

Now, off to not only attend his fathers’ funeral, but also the reunion of his siblings and the extents of what comes with it. 

He feels like shit already. 


	2. Chapter 2

Mikey hasn’t seen his brother in years. It’s pathetic, he knows, given just how close he had once been to Donatello. However, after Big Mama had adopted him, everything had changed so roughly. They had been whisked from New York to Los Angeles. He was also getting to know Raphael and Leonardo  _ officially _ now that thye lived together and all the other things like that. He was also finally coming to understand Big Mama and the luscious life she never managed to stray from. Of course, that had meant everything in his life was “upgraded,” phone and SIM card included. It meant the end to his contact with his brother, the suggestion Donnie had once given him to upload his contact to Google instead of just his device fresh in his mind after he shattered the device unintentionally and after getting it wiped once fixed. His heart had dropped but he had progressively come to terms with it. 

Well, until now, given that he’s sitting in the car with Raph. He’s only seen Donnie a few times since the judge issued he be beneath Big Mama’s custody, just while they were moving away. It was nothing more than in passing outside of the one last time April had managed to snaggle them to all get together just before the three Hamatos left their brother alone. During that time, Donnie had been rather ill, even throwing up after eating pizza and outright refusing anything after that. Odd thing was, he didn’t look at all sick or anything of that sort outside of the neverending nausea, just looking mildly displaced with confused looks from April getting passed his way more than just a few times. 

The last time he had even generally mentioned Donnie before the funeral invitations had shown up was the text Donnie had sent about him having to go, something about a nurse and the hospital which had put Mikey on the brink of a panic attack because Donnie  _ hated _ hospitals, would certainly do everything to avoid them no matter the cost. Baron had to drag him to the hospital far more than  _ just _ once and so hearing that he willingly had gone took his breath away. He had shattered his phone after and had only heard a follow up about it as a follow-up call from Draxum to the house phone where his father was quick to inform that everything was fine and great before having to leave once more, quick with his actions. 

“Do you think he’ll be mad at us,” Mikey asks in a quiet voice. 

He’s changed since he'd last seen his older brother. Not enough that it wasn’t noticeable, but he certainly no longer looks like a kid and he’s made a title for himself now, a stand-up comedian that acts, just like Leo, albeit his brother is far more an actor than a comedian. He could be a therapist, yes, but he had lost interest in that after he realized just how emotionally traumatizing it could be on himself after getting a patient that reminded him so much of Donnie that he could probably squint and see his brother. So, not an all that good match up, to be quite honest. 

Raphael owns his own recording company that doesn’t exactly have a specific brand but has grown large quickly within the few years it’s been launched but it’s large for its out there ideas that never seem to stop. He also owns a chain of gyms in LA and an other assortment of larger cities that he profits off of, too, which had booming business, too. 

So, to say the very least, the three had made it off well. Their shared brother had been lost within the past. 

From the back seats, Leo stirs, his sleep getting disturbed by a pothole that makes him bump his head against the door, a low groan leaving him. He leans up, rubbing at the side of his head in time to be met with Raph’s contemplative silence. The oldest mulls over the question with intense thought to it, hands still firmly placed on the wheel as he drives the car. 

“I don’t know, Mikey,” he eventually supplies in a blunt tone. 

“What are we talking about,” Leo asks in a hoarse voice. He’s still groggy thanks to his nap. 

“If Donnie will be mad at us or not,” Raph replies. 

Leo hums thoughtfully. “Probably not,” 

Mikey raises a brow to ask, “Why do you say that?” 

“Would he have invited two people he basically barely knew to his  _ precious pop’s funeral _ for no reason?” He raises a slight brow. “He’s stubborn as a mule, he’d kick us before he even considered pranking us if he’s angry.” 

Leo half-heartedly pulls out the invitation the the funeral, sighing quietly. He whispers, “Yeah, I guess you’re right,” before sniffling and wiping at his face, scrubbing the skin. 


	3. reunions aren't always the sweetest

Donnie is thankful this is a closed-casket funeral. He isn’t willing to voice it aloud, though he was rather certain that the others attending the funeral that had arrived so far had figured it out. That meant only Huginn, Muninn, April, and her two wives, Sunita and Casey joining her. The five had been his go-to comfort whenever they were available, but between the little group having their own lives and Huginn and Munnin focusing on running the company Draxum had left for his son until he was mentally able to take it over himself, well, it was going to be a bit before he was able to actually talk to them. 

However, April smiles sympathetically at her best friend, leaning against him enough to press a gentle kiss to his cheek. The action is supportive, her hand laced with his before she lets go to say, “I’ll be in there with everyone else, okay? Sunny might still be showing Shelldon all those baby pictures she brought of Mayhem and the ones we have of him and Barry.” She brings a hand up to gently rub at his back, softly ghosting over the scars there, still wary all these years later. “Come in when you feel up for it, okay?” 

Donnie nods slowly with a gentle sigh, huffing a soft breath out. “Yeah,” he murmurs as she slowly pulls away, “I’ll go in in a few minutes. I just need a moment to breathe right now.” 

She hums and nods once more. She can’t find the need to push his mentality, already so distinctly aware of just how mentally taxing this was on him. He wasn’t even aware of if his siblings had or had not gotten his invitations or not and that had aided in worsening his anxiety. 

The woman saunters away, not minding as Casey tentatively lans out the door, looking around for her wife. There aren’t that many people here, just the little party and the staff, so her eyes quickly fall on the other and she slightly relaxes at seeing her making her way back to the open room. 

As soon at the door shuts, though, he’s left by himself, left to stew in the slur of emotions that have been pummeling him all damn day. He doesn’t want to think about it. 

Donnie doesn’t have that much time to think about it thanks to the sound of the front doors of the funeral home opening up, three men that Donnie knows by heart stumbling in with (honestly very little) grace to their steps. He can’t stop himself from turning towards them and slightly folding in on himself, hands balling anxiously.  _ Good lords, _ he hasn’t seen any of them in person in a while. 

It’s unmistakable, recognizing his siblings. Mikey, who is still short, his coils of hair dyed orange to fit his aesthetic, the same one he’s carried for so long. And Raph, who stands tall and is almost all muscle, dark skin paired perfectly with his whole ensemble of red that Donnie subconsciously finds comfort in. And finally, his twin, who looks nothing like Donnie whatsoever. They contrast entirely, Donnie’s dark skin not at all close to Leo’s tan. The only thing that matches about them are the splotches of white, the pure albino tones of their mother there. Donnie’s never met his mother, but from what he’s heard, Donnie looks more like her than Yoshi, unlike his twin. Hell, even their eyes clash, mirrored with red and blue, on each respective side for them. Straight, blonde locks don’t match with 4b and 4c mixed coils, after all. 

The other three falter immediately at seeing their brother, who looks small despite having grown to be the second tallest. Wide eyes meet other wide eyes, none of them sure how to respond to each other. It’s Mikey, who makes the first move to actually do anything. 

He runs forward, tackling his brother in a tight hug, arms wrapping around the second eldest. Donnie responds immediately, not needing much prompting. It was a habit, even after so many years. He doesn’t hesitate to cling to the other, eyes falling shut at he relaxes against the other. He takes so much comfort in hearing Mikey say, “Holy  _ shit, _ Dee, I missed you!” 

“Missed you, too, Mikey,” he whispers in a soft voice, tucking his head against the other’s neck. 

Mikey pulls back while the other two follow behind him, snatching him in their own hugs and comforting hellos. 

“You’re so  _ tall,” _ Mikey muses. He leans against his shoulder. “You’re, like, three whole heads taller than me now.” 

“I’m six-foot-seven,” Donnie states bluntly. “After Shelldon, I got put on testosterone, so I grew a lot.” 

Raph raises a brow and asks, “Who?” 

Before Donnie can reply, though, the door to the main funeral room opens, a bolt of boy running to his father. He slams against the other’s leg within second, holding onto a book tightly within his hand. If Donnie weren’t so used to his son unintentionally slamming into his legs with wavy objects, he probably would have sobbed at the pain that followed. However, he’s basically got shins of steel now, so he peers down fondly at his son’s yelps of, “Daddy, Daddy, look at this!” 

He bends down enough to look at the photo album, finding the picture in his hands familiar. It’s almost comically ironic to be showing him the hospital pictures, the ones after Donnie had woken up from his surgery just barely alive and plugged into a million different things. April had taken the photo, sitting beside Donnie, who held tightly to the bundle of baby with Baron fretting over them in the background, helping Donnie support holding his son. He practically looked dead in the photograph. He squats down to look at it entirely. 

“You look a lot different,” Shelldon says, pointing at the photograph with wide eyes, brown locking with red and blue. “Like Aunty April!” 

“Oh, do I,” he asks, amused. 

Shelldon nods enthusiastically. “You two look like siblings!” 

Donnie smiles widely and shakes his head. “Not by blood, kiddo. You don’t have any aunts like that. But you do have three uncles.” He gestures over at his brothers. 

Shelldon finally meets their curious gazes. Or, well,  _ Raph’s _ curious gaze. Mikey looks like he’s seeing stars, smiling widely, hands balled and folded up to his chest. Leo, though, looks mildly disturbed as he peers at the child but straightens to a forced smile after he realizes Shelldon is looking at him. 

“This is Shelldon,” Donnie introduces to the other three, “my  _ son. _ And Shelldon, theses are your uncles, Raph, Leo, and Mikey.” He gestures to each one accordingly, though he knows the boy is already aware of them since he sees him in shows and on TV, always asking Donnie about them since April had first mentioned offhandedly that Mikey was related to them a few years ago. 

_ “Shelldon,” _ Donnie hears Huginn call suddenly from the room, smiling in his carefree way. He smiles even wider at seeing the Hamato siblings now meeting the youngest, but finds himself accidentally snatching the others’ attention. He isn’t surprised when Shelldon comes running towards him, wanting to show him the photo album. He does say a soft, “Sorry,” before disappearing once more. 

“How… How old is he,” Raph asks in a soft tone, frowning slightly. “I didn’t even know you got married.” 

“I didn’t,” Donnie reassures with a slight shake of his hand, the gesture dismissive. “He’s seven.” 

Leo scrunches his nose and sticks his tongue out as he says, “I don’t want to imagine you having sex, that’s  _ gross.” _

“I  _ literally _ have to hear about all of your hookups,” Raph states bluntly. 

Leo makes a dismissive gesture with a huff. 

_ Nothing ever changes, _ Donnie thinks with a smile. “I actually got pregnant about a month after you three… left.” He hesitates, not entirely sure that was the right word. “Would adopted work better here? I’m not really sure.” 

Mikey frowns slightly. “Wait, wait, you  _ hated _ parties and stuff, how’d you even meet someone?” 

Raph smacks the back of his hold in a scolding way that reminds Donnie of Splinter, rather on the nose. “You can’t just  _ say that.” _

Donnie only waves his hand. “It’s fine, Raph. And I sort of started… Acting out, honestly.” He rubs at the back of his neck, blushing slightly. “I figured that since Mikey and Leo would go to parties all the time and they were pretty happy with their friends and all that… Maybe it would make me happy, too, or something along those lines.” 

“That is so sad,” Leo says rather bluntly. “So, you got lonely and then got knocked up. At least you weren’t lonely again, huh?” 

Mikey snorts, shoving his brother away suddenly. “Don’t be rude,” he jokes softly. “It is, though.” he quickly follows up with, “Sad, I mean.” 

“I was  _ sixteen,” _ Donnie snorts in reply. “I didn’t know better and I didn’t really know how to cope with knowing that the woman my biological father married wanted nothing to do with me and the only thing familiar had been ripped away from me so suddenly, especially knowing that she wanted my siblings but hated me.” 

Leo frowned, glaring slightly. “Hey, she didn’t hate you.” 

Donnie raises a skeptical brow. “She never fought over me in court.”

“That’s not her fault-” 

“It  _ literally _ is,” Mikey whispers in support of Donnie. 

_ “Hush,” _ Leo snaps. 

Raph moves his arms between them before they can fight anymore, pushing Leo back. “Hey, we’re not here to fight, remember?” 

“We’re not fighting,” the twins say together, resulting in a half-hearted glare from the younger and bored look from the older. 

“Well, we’re not letting it turn into a fight,” Raph supplies. “This is a funeral, after all.” 

“Yeah, one that I planned with  _ April,” _ Donnie states softly, rolling his eyes at Leo’s scoff. 

Mikey softly asks, “Are you two done?” 

Donnie nods respectfully and says, “Yeah, I’m done,” his voice defected and somber. 

Leo only mumbles something and nods reluctantly. 

“Alright, then. We can act civil right now and fight about Ma  _ later, _ okay?” 

**Author's Note:**

> Please leave likes and comments! If you particularly liked my fic, here's my Discord server!  
> https://discord.gg/eGkwayy


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